Combating Fentanyl - The America First Action Plan Book

Today, our Nation is in the midst of a serious public health crisis. Illicit fentanyl has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of Americans, yet there seems to be little consensus regarding the origin of the drug and how it has infiltrated our communities. This book is intended to be the trusted resource for state and federal policymakers to understand the threat of fentanyl and the America First solutions needed to fix this crisis. It is also intended to be a resource to educate all Americans about this dangerous drug and why it is such a threat to our communities. Organized into two sections, this book first examines the origins of fentanyl and its precursors, which are substances used to make fentanyl that originate mainly in China. The Mexican drug cartels, which are Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs), then manufacture the drug and smuggle it across the U.S. border, which is how it arrives in American communities. Unfortunately, the Biden Administration’s border crisis has fueled the ability of the drug cartels to transport fentanyl into the Nation, where it threatens millions of American lives. The administration’s changes to border policy and its reluctance to enforce immigration laws are a testament to how such policy decisions can produce deadly consequences that traumatize the lives of parents and loved ones forever. 

The next section of this book details the America First action plan to combat fentanyl and safeguard the American people from the horrors of this drug. Our Nation’s policymakers have never had a better reason to rise to the challenge of doing what the people elected them to do: protect Americans and serve their interests first. To effectively end this crisis, policymakers must examine how fentanyl arrives in the U.S. and address the overwhelming demand for this drug. By refusing to secure our border and tackle the threat of this drug headon, the Biden Administration’s approach ends up serving the interests of China and the Mexican drug cartels. The crisis cannot be solved without first examining the origins of fentanyl and committing to stopping its flow head-on. This is the “root causes” approach that the Biden Administration should be using when addressing this issue. Policymakers must also address the increased potency of fentanyl and the fact that far too many Americans are being poisoned by the deadly drug. Specific initiatives to address this are a key part of the America First approach because we need the next generation of Americans to be healthy and drug-free. We hope you will join us in turning this action plan into a reality.